How do I preview changes?

When you are in the editing screen for a page, you can see several buttons on the right-hand side. The Publish button saves the page, but, before you do that, you'll likely want to know what the page looks like in case you need to make any corrections.

So, to preview what your edit will look like on the page before publishing it, you would use the Mobile or Desktop preview buttons.

The Mobile preview and Desktop preview buttons

Clicking either of the two preview buttons will show you what the page will look like if you publish your current revision. The 'Mobile' preview is what will appear on smartphone-sized devices. The "Desktop" preview is what will appear on tablets, laptops, and desktops.

The bottom of the preview box has a Publish button you can click if the page is ready to be saved, as well as a Back button if you need to return to the editor and make further changes.

The "Show changes" option

Show changes option

To the left of the publish button is a "show changes" link.

If you click this, a page will appear highlighting the differences between your yet-to-be-saved version and the last saved version of the page. Some people find this easier to examine for errors and completeness than a simple preview. As with the regular preview page, you can click Publish after showing changes to save your edits.

Why should I preview my edits?

Preview the page at different sizes

Preview a page in the Fandom Mobile layout

To be clear, there is no technical requirement that you preview your edits. But it is helpful.

The biggest way? It lets you see the effect of your edits across several different device widths. Since the Fandom skin adapts itself to different screen sizes, it can be instructive to see how your changes affect the look of the page on tablets, desktop, and extra-large desktops. Most importantly, it gives you a glimpse of the page on mobile web, a radically different skin used on phones.

But some editors also use it for housekeeping reasons. Previewing your edits lets you include many changes into a single edit, thereby reducing the number of entries on the page's history.